No one’s hiring…

You’re sitting at the desk in your office. You’re bored out of your mind. You finished your work hours ago. You look at the clock on your wall. The hour and minute arms are seemingly at a standstill. You start daydreaming about working at a job that’s exciting, fast-paced, and ever changing. You decide to make the dream a reality. You apply for jobs online. You ask friends about openings at their companies. You go to networking events. Nothing materializes. You finally come to the conclusion that you have to stay at your current job. The reason? There are no jobs in your area.

But is that true? It’s easy to make that excuse. Telling yourself that no one’s hiring lets you off the hook. It’s a reason you can use to keep yourself from going after a job you’d enjoy. But did you really put forth all your effort? Did you exhaust all possibilities?

If you’re applying for jobs online and getting no takers, stop applying for jobs online. Everyone lobs a resume into an online portal. How are you going to stand out? By bypassing the online portal. Find out the name and email address of the hiring manager for a position of interest, and contact that person directly. Hiring managers hire people when they have an issue. Tell the hiring manager how you can help with that issue. Tell the hiring manager what your process will be for solving that issue. Doing this step alone will set you apart from the competition.

What if there is no position of interest being advertised at your friends’ company? Or at any company in your area for that matter? Contact the hiring manager anyway. You never know what issue he or she is dealing with. Your email may come at the right time. This approach has definitely worked for me. I approached a trademark firm that did not have a job advertisement posted anywhere. It turns out that the firm was looking for someone who could help out with patent work, though. I came along at the right time, and before I knew it, I had a new gig and I didn’t have to compete with anyone else to get it.

Glad handing at networking events yields no results? Remember that networking is a long game. You’re talking to complete strangers after all. Why should they help you get a job? They may help after you have formed a relationship with them, though. People help their friends, not some dude who gave them a business card at a happy hour mixer.

Also consider creating your own job. Go into business for yourself. Address a need. People will pay you for it. Hiring a freelancer can often be cheaper than hiring a full time employee. Not only that, but when you’re a freelancer, you can have multiple clients. You’re not dependent on one employer for all your income. You can spread the risk!

So if you’re telling yourself that no one is hiring, you need to change the narrative and fast. Be more creative in finding opportunities. And if that doesn’t work, create your own.